Guns Mainstream?

November 28, 2011

I heard an ad for a gun Web site on the radio this morning. (They’re having their “cyber-Monday” sale.) I’ve never heard an ad for a gun Web site on the radio before. I wonder whether it’s a sign of a changing culture.

Maybe a correction in the pro-gun direction was bound to happen. Maybe it was always strange and unsustainable for something that was a part of the lives of so many Americans—gun ownership—to be so alien, even repugnant, to so many others. Gallup reports that from 1960 to now, the fraction of Americans who “have a gun in the home” has ranged between about a third and about half, most recently 45% as of last month, although others argue that only a third of households have guns and that that number is declining.

That Gallup page also reports steadily increasing support for gun rights (or decreasing support for gun control, however you want to look at it) over the past twenty years.

I talk plenty about ways in which American culture has declined over time, but it’s a complex world, and it’s also possible for a culture to improve in a given area over time—even at the same time.

You’ve been a conservative for how many years now, and have yet to purchase a gun. It almost seems like you’re not so secretly averse to the ownership of deadly weapons. Anywho, I recommend the sawed-off shotgun.

Let me clarify. You inferred an aversion to private weapon ownership from Chillingworth’s lack of a gun. I meant to suggest that this argument is about as logical as inferring an aversion to the great outdoors from my failure to visit Yellowstone.

The comparison makes no sense. No one would infer an aversion to the Great Outdoors from the fact that someone has not been to a certain national park. They would assume that that person simply does not have the time and/or money to take a vacation.

Buying a gun, on the other hand, is rather easy to do. Certainly money is not an issue. Or time. If Chillingworth actually thinks that guns makes people safer, he would have bought one. The fact that he has not leads me to the conclusion that he thinks they are in fact dangerous, and not a wise investment.

It must be nice to see it that way. In any case, I’m pretty sure I could fund a week’s camping trip to Yellowstone for less than the combined cost of a quality handgun, instruction, licensing, and the amount of ammunition (expensive these days!) I’d need to get in an adequate amount of practice. Add to this checklist the research I’d need to do before selecting a weapon, and I’m afraid that responsible gun ownership involves a little more committment—both of time and money—than a trip to Wal-Mart.

Considering the costs, it’s patently fallacious to infer an aversion to gun ownership from Chillingworth’s not having gotten around to it. The most you can fairly infer is that getting a gun hasn’t been his “number one” priority.

First. Decide if you really want one. Depending on where you live (certain municipalities require expenditures other than the price of the gun) and your living conditions (a significant other and children can complicate matters) you may decide owning a gun is too much bother or too dangerous all in all. Another complication is price; a decent handgun will start in the $300 to $400 range and go up. Your budget may or may not handle it. Up to you.

Second. What sort of gun do you want? Targets only? Self-defense? Bear hunting? Contrary to some opinions, guns aren’t just guns.

Third. Research some. There are firearms websites that will lecture you, and some that have discussion forums. The discussion forums have a broad spectrum of views, some even worthwhile.

The actual buying comes later. Most of what you need is more than twenty-one birthdays and a reasonably clean record. No felony convictions and no misdemeanor violations including violence. Not be a drug addict, never have been adjudged insane and so forth. In some jurisdictions you’ll need some form of ‘license’ to buy a firearm.

If you live in Chicago, New York City or Boston, move.

I can give you some more background information, but don’t want to tie up your blog. If you feel like it, contact me directly.

[…] not the country we were a decade ago, or two or three: We have a much more solid consensus in favor of the right to keep and bear arms. To get some idea of the trend over time, just look at Wikipedia’s animated GIF about […]